2016 Manifesto

Planning Ahead for Regeneration

SURF has produced a Manifesto for Regeneration and promoted it to the main political parties in advance of the 2016 Scottish Parliament elections.

Our 2016 manifesto is based on two interlinked priorities, addressing poverty and supporting place-based regeneration, which feed into the overarching theme of improving wellbeing. As part of a comprehensive 18 month consultation process, participants at SURF’s 2015 Annual Conference were given the opportunity to debate, prioritise and vote on 18 draft policy proposals.

Read SURF’s 2016 Manifesto

SURF’s 2016 Manifesto for Regeneration, with nine ‘bold and practical’ policy recommendations for the next Scottish Government, is available for download below (PDF format):

Watch Scottish Regeneration Question Time

SURF debated the manifesto with representatives of Scotland’s main political parties in a hustings-style event on the afternoon of Thursday 7 April in CoSLA Conference Centre, Edinburgh.

More than 50 SURF network colleagues took part in a lively and engaging open discussion with topics including housing supply, regional regeneration support mechanisms, the planning system, local government powers and citizens’ income. The political party participants were (a-z by surname):

Marco Biagi MSP, Scottish National Party – Minister for Local Government and Community Empowerment

Willie Black, RISE– Party Spokesperson for Regeneration

Cllr Johanna Boyd, Labour– Leader of Stirling Council and candidate for the Mid Scotland and Fife region

Iain McGill, Conservative– Scottish Policy Board Member and candidate for the Lothian region and the Edinburgh Northern and Leith constituency

Party & Independent Manifestos

SURF looked at the regeneration commitments published in the policy manifestos of the main political parties competing for seats in the 2016 Scottish Parliament elections, and analysed the extent to which SURF manifesto proposals were reflected in the party manifestos. Please click here for details.

SURF also produced a matrix of manifestos produced by other umbrella and network bodies in Scotland for the 2016 elections, including CoSLA, RTPI Scotland and the Federation of Small Businesses.

SURF Manifesto Development Process

Phase One: Initial Consultation, late 2014 to mid 2015

The initial development stage of the drafting process towards SURF’s 2016 manifesto for community regeneration was split into three broad areas as follows:

Face-to-face interviews with SURF’s Key Delivery Partners to explore what they would like to see in the manifesto;

Face-to-face discussions and phone calls with partner organisations that are engaged in policy influencing work that is particularly relevant to SURF’s manifesto themes;

Desk-based research, drawing out potential policy recommendations from SURF activities and relevant recent independent reports in the two main policy areas of addressing poverty & inequality and supporting successful places.

Together, these three activities formed the basis of a first draft of the manifesto. Materials drawn from the three activities were compiled into a single draft document in June.

Phase Two: Second Stage Consultation, Mid June to End July 2015

The second draft of SURF’s 2015 manifesto was circulated in August 2015

The first draft was presented to 50 experts representing a wide range of regeneration-related policy areas. Each contact was invited to comment on the draft policy recommendations and suggest additional ones. The SURF team considered the feedback received, and amended the first draft accordingly.

Phase Three: SURF Network Consultation, August to November 2015

In early August, SURF widely circulated a second draft via its mailing list, website, and directly to those attending the 2015 SURF Annual Conference. Participants were given the opportunity to discuss, vote and offer additional suggestions at the conference and following the event. Additional consultation development activity followed the event.

Phase Four: Final Manifesto Launched on 15 January 2016

The final manifesto was informed by the views and information gathered in phase three. It was lauched in mid-January 2016 and formally submitted to the main political parties competing in the 2016 Scottish Parliament elections, in addition to wide circulation through SURF’s network.

Phase Five: 2016 Hustings Debate

The final manifesto formed the basis for a 2016 SURF Scottish Regeneration Question Time husting-style debate with guest politicians, which took place on 7 April 2016 in Edinburgh’s CoSLA Centre.

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